Furoshiki: The Original Japanese Eco-Bag

furoshiki

A furoshiki is a Japanese square cloth used to wrap, carry, and store things. It is a traditional item, with its origins said to date back to the Nara period (around 700 AD). The name, which translates literally to “bath sheet,” comes from the fact that people would use them in public baths to wrap and carry around their clothes. However, the uses of furoshiki are wide-ranging and have continued to evolve throughout the ages.

Left: A furoshiki is a simple square of fabric with endless possibilities. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Kururi)
Right: Oiso, from the series “Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Tokaido Gojusan Tsugi)” by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) from the Clarence Buckingham Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago. In this woodblock print we can see travelers using furoshiki in various ways.

Top: A furoshiki is a simple square of fabric with endless possibilities. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Kururi)
Bottom: Oiso, from the series “Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Tokaido Gojusan Tsugi)” by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) from the Clarence Buckingham Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago. In this woodblock print we can see travelers using furoshiki in various ways.

A Versatile Cloth with Endless Varieties

Furoshiki are characterized by their flexibility and versatility. Though a furoshiki always begins as a simple square, it can be freely transformed to fit the size and shape of all manner of items. It can be used as a purse or book-bag to carry your essentials, a shopping bag to wrap up your purchases, or an elegant way to wrap and present a gift. Indeed, Japanese people are highly inventive in the art of wrapping and tying furoshiki. By innovating and sharing a wide variety of tying techniques, furoshiki has taken root as an essential item in the lives of many Japanese people.

Using various tying techniques, furoshiki can be used to wrap boxes, bottles, and any other shape you can imagine. (Photo courtesy of Link Collective K.K.)

Furoshiki can be made out of a variety of materials, but silk, cotton, and nylon are the most common. Silk furoshiki in particular have a luxurious feel and make great gifts for special occasions. They come in a wide variety of colors and patterns, from traditional Japanese motifs to modern designs. You can even find furoshiki featuring popular characters and designs featuring the work of famous Japanese artists and designers.

Left: A furoshiki shop with a wide range of designs and patterns for sale. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Fuiru)
Middle: This furoshiki is made from special hydrophobic material to protect your belongings from the rain. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Fuiru)
Right: A furoshiki featuring Hokusai’s famous “Great Wave Off Kanagawa” print. (Photo courtesy of Musubi)

Top: A furoshiki shop with a wide range of designs and patterns for sale. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Fuiru)
Middle: This furoshiki is made from special hydrophobic material to protect your belongings from the rain. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Fuiru)
Bottom: A furoshiki featuring Hokusai’s famous “Great Wave Off Kanagawa” print. (Photo courtesy of Musubi)

The Sustainability Potentials of Furoshiki

Furoshiki are more than just fashionable. In recent years, they have been reevaluated from the perspective of SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). As awareness of environmental issues grows not only in Japan but around the world, many people are looking to furoshiki as an alternative to disposable shopping bags and packing materials.

In 2020, in an effort to reduce the proliferation of single-use plastics, the Japanese government enacted a law making it mandatory for shops to charge a small fee for disposable plastic bags. Against this backdrop, many people turned to the age-old furoshiki. Furoshiki can be folded and carried compactly, making them very convenient to use as an eco-bag. The versatility of the square shape means that you can carry whatever you end up bringing home from the store and avoid the use of disposable shopping bags.

A woman bundles up her groceries in a furoshiki. (Photo courtesy of Musubi)

Recently furoshiki made from recycled and eco-friendly materials have been appearing, attracting attention as highly sustainable products. These furoshiki serve triple duty by recycling waste materials, reducing the amount of new plastic bags and other disposable packing materials that end up in the environment, and being reused as a beautiful and beloved item for years to come.

Furoshiki Rides the Retro Wave

Furoshiki have also been gaining attention lately due to the recent boom in Japan of all things retro. Young people seeking to connect with their heritage are learning about and embracing traditional Japanese crafts and customs. Furoshiki in particular are being adopted by people in their 20s and 30s as a trendy fashion item. In the face of this surge in demand, furoshiki events and workshops have been popping up in tourist destinations like Kyoto. In these workshops people can learn various furoshiki wrapping and tying techniques and even try dying their own furoshiki. These workshops are popular not just with foreign tourists but with young Japanese people as well, helping to spread the furoshiki tradition to the next generation.

Left: A furoshiki can be used as a stylish and trendy handbag. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Fuiru)
Right: People learn furoshiki wrapping and tying techniques at a workshop. (Photo courtesy of Musubi)

Top: A furoshiki can be used as a stylish and trendy handbag. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Fuiru)
Bottom: People learn furoshiki wrapping and tying techniques at a workshop. (Photo courtesy of Musubi)

Furoshiki Abroad

Furoshiki make a perfect souvenir from Japan due to their beauty, affordability, and unique Japanese charm. Therefore, it is no wonder that furoshiki have been spreading overseas more and more lately. And as the number of people using furoshiki abroad has increased, so have the ways in which they use them. One popular use among people abroad is to wear a furoshiki around the neck as a scarf or around the shoulders as a shawl. Some people display their furoshiki on the wall, enjoying them as a work of art. One person we spoke to, a young American woman and interior decor enthusiast, uses her furoshiki as a decorative tablecloth to add a pop of color and pattern to an otherwise plain dresser. Another person we spoke to, a housewife, said she enjoys using her furoshiki in her table setting, using it to cover a basket of freshly baked bread or biscuits. She says, “It keeps the bread warm, and the eye-catching Japanese design always receives compliments from guests.” Perhaps the best thing about furoshiki is that there are no wrong ways to use it!

Left: A furoshiki shop provides helpful information to foreign tourists about how to tie a furoshiki. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Kururi)
Middle: A woman wears a furoshiki as a scarf. (Photo courtesy of Link Collective K.K.)
Right: A furoshiki used as a tablecloth can add some Japanese flair to your table setting. (Photo courtesy of BIKEN TEXTILE CO.,LTD.)

Top: A furoshiki shop provides helpful information to foreign tourists about how to tie a furoshiki. (Photo courtesy of Kamakura Kururi)
Middle: A woman wears a furoshiki as a scarf. (Photo courtesy of Link Collective K.K.)
Bottom: A furoshiki used as a tablecloth can add some Japanese flair to your table setting. (Photo courtesy of BIKEN TEXTILE CO.,LTD.)

Furoshiki is more than just a cloth. It is a tradition that dates back centuries and continues to evolve to this day. By incorporating furoshiki into your lifestyle, you can reduce your environmental impact, enrich your daily life, and maybe even discover new ways to use it!